Here’s a movie intended for the youngest of audiences that’s full of many pleasant surprises. NANNY MCPHEE RETURNS is a sequel to 2005’s NANNY NCPHEE. I didn’t see the original, so I came in with a fresh set of eyes having only seen the trailers. These trailers seemed to just focus on various characters falling in the mud and poo(warning parents: you get to hear that word about 25 times in the first half hour) and shots of the adorable farm animals. Happily the film itself has much more to offer than slapstick.

The film opens in the English countryside during World War II ( although WWII is never spoken during the film, it’s just referred to as the war). Mrs. Green (played by Maggie Gyllenhaal as a woman in dire need of rest) is running a small farm with the help of her two sons and daughter and managing a general store with help(sometimes) from the dotty, daffy Mrs. Docherty (Maggie Smith) while Green’s  husband is serving in the war. On this morning the very frazzled Mrs. Green is expecting a visit from her sister’s son and daughter, who will spend the rest of the war at the Green farm. The city kids are rich, spoiled brats who immediately turn up their noses at living on the farm and battle the Green children. In reference to WWII rationing, the kids had been saving sugar stamps for a small jar of homemade jam for their father which the snobby cousin Cyril smashes on the floor. Mrs. Green is at her wits end when the general store’s shelves (which Mrs. Docherty had filled with syrup) open and close while repeating, ”Nanny McPhee is who you need”. Of course the magical caregiver appears. An imposing woman dressed in black, her face a collection of hairy warts and moles(complete with a large pug nose, unibrow, and single snaggle tooth), and armed with a large, curved wooden cane. This is not Mary Poppins!  Returning to the Green farm, she immediately uses her magic to get the children in line. Through the film she teaches the children how to get along and helps Mrs. Green fend off her brother-in-law Phil(Rhys Ifans) who wants her to sign away the farm to settle his gambling debts(he’s trying to keep ahead of the casino’s debt collectors: two very funny blonde sisters).

As I mentioned earlier there’s a good amount of slapstick scenes involving Phil and the children. Also Nanny uses her magic to utilize the farm animals to teach the kids. There’s some well done CGI effects on display especially with a baby elephant and six little piglets with a penchant for Esther Williams water ballets. The photography of the English landscape is gorgeous and the art direction and costuming are superb. A visit to wartime London (complete with dirigibles floating overhead) is impressive. Gyllenaal does a respectable British accent and the kids are cute without be cloying.  What surprised me the most were several scenes dealing with how a family copes while the father is at war and a heartbreaking sequence that deals with the effect of divorce on children. This may open up a few discussions on the way home. The film moves at a brisk pace and should hold the attention of  most pre-schoolers. More importantly any adults who escort them should find it a pleasant way to spent a trip to the movies It’s may not be Pixar-quality, but at least it’s not full of pop culture references, crotch hits, and bubble gum tunes. As I said earlier: a pleasant surprise.

Overall rating: 4 STARS OUT OF 5